


Who has no fear?

by creampuffqueen



Series: Future Family Fics [15]
Category: Renegades - Marissa Meyer
Genre: Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Hurt, Kids, PTSD sort of, powers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-17
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:02:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23188945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/creampuffqueen/pseuds/creampuffqueen
Summary: A tumblr request, "Could you write something for one of Nodrian's daughters. Like she feels pressured to be strong like her parents but she's scared and doesn't want them to know? Idk I feel like this would be sooo cute"
Relationships: Nova Artino | Nightmare/Adrian Everhart | Sketch
Series: Future Family Fics [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1538509
Comments: 4
Kudos: 11





	Who has no fear?

**Author's Note:**

> Read this on Tumblr @creampuffqueen
> 
> Also, just in case this doesn't make it clear, Estrella has obviously been abused and is now in foster care with Nova and Adrian. She gets adopted by them later, but that's not in this fic. Her powers are trauma-based, and they are shrinking.

Estrella was used to loud noise. She’d grown up with loud, booming sound, surrounding her everywhere she went. And now, with this new family, silence was not an option. 

The Everhart-Artino household was bustling with activity, at all hours of the day. Even at night, someone was up, working late. Usually Nova or Evangeline, she’d discovered.

At least the noise in this house was always friendly. It was Nebula and Caspian laughing over a video game. It was Lyra, cooing to the animals in the yard. It was the toddlers squealing with excitement. 

At least it wasn’t the type of loud noise Estrella had grown up with.

But, just because it wasn’t screaming curses or shattering bottles, didn’t mean she enjoyed it entirely. Which was evident, seeing as she was currently about three inches tall in the middle of a bedroom, after the hallway door had been slammed on accident.

Trying to calm her racing heart, Estrella scurried underneath the bed, where she was less likely to be stepped on. She shuddered and leaned against the bedpost, then sank down to cradle her head in her hands.

“Pathetic.” She whispered. “You’re eleven years old, but you get freaked out at the slightest noise.”

Then Estrella started to sob. Biting her lip to keep the sound to herself, holding her clenched stomach as tears streaked down her face.

_Pathetic. Pathetic. Pathetic._ Words danced through her head, as real as if someone were screaming them in her face. 

She didn’t know how long she sat there, crying in the dark. But suddenly the door creaked open, and a pair of giant shoes stepped inside.

“Estrella? Sweetheart, are you in here?” That was Nova’s voice, gentle and quiet, as if she knew she’d shrank again and her ears were sensitive.

“I’m here.” She squeaked out. She walked away from the bed, and managed to pull her focus together enough to grow back to her normal size. Feeling suddenly exposed, she crossed her arms protectively over her chest.

“I couldn’t find you.” Nova explained softly. “I got worried about you. What happened?”

“It’s nothing.” She muttered, trying to brush the woman off.

“Estrella, if you don’t want to talk, I won’t make you. But I can’t help you if you won’t tell me what’s upsetting you.”

She hated how much sense Nova was making. It took everything in her not to snap, or just shrink again and hide away. But she was so tired of running.

“It’s loud sometimes.” She whispered. That was the only explanation she offered before she pushed past Nova and out into the hallway, making her way to the kitchen.

The kitchen was big and empty, which was perfect. All the other kids were gathered in the living room or their bedrooms. As much as Estrella loved to be around them, she needed to be alone.

The kitchen was also full of places to hide. Cabinets, shelves, the whole room was her space to get away. Tucking herself into a cabinet, Estrella tried to make herself comfortable among the pots and pans, letting the familiar darkness surround her.

Her breathing finally evened out, and she felt her muscles loosening from how they’d been clenched. She closed her eyes, breathing deeply against the tears threatening to spill over again.

“Estrella?” It was that voice again, gentle and welcoming. Even despite the wooden cabinet door muffling it, she could still tell the voice didn’t belong to her foster mother. Rather, it was Adrian’s voice. 

“Estrella, my star, would you come out? I know it can’t be comfortable wherever you are right now.” Carefully, she pushed against the door, wincing at the light that spilled in.

“I’m going to come closer, alright?” Adrian’s footsteps grew nearer, then stopped.

“I’m going to open the door now, sweetheart. Cover your eyes if it’s too bright.” Estrella did just that, curling in on herself and clamping her hands over her eyes. The door creaked open, and she held her breath, fighting against her instincts that demanded her powers to be put to use.

When she opened her eyes, Adrian was sitting about a foot away, criss-crossed on the kitchen floor, looking at her with such gentleness Estrella didn’t know what to think.

They sat there for a minute, just staring at each other. Nova joined him a moment later, sitting down silently next to her husband.

Slowly, Estrella crawled out of the cabinet. A pot creaked as she squirmed over it, eliciting a terrified squeak, but she held herself together.

“You are safe here.” Nova murmured to her. “Nothing can hurt you here.” Estrella wanted so badly to believe her. She knew it was true, but the little nagging part of her brain refused it. 

_Run run run run run_ it begged.

_No._

Estrella crawled, hands and knees, until she found herself in Nova’s embrace. And she was being held, and she was sobbing, and things were the most right they’d ever been in her life.

Adrian cradled her too, and she sniffled into his shoulder. Nova ran a soothing hand through her short hair, whispering softly into her ear, “You’re safe. Shh, sweetheart, you’re safe.”

“I’m sorry.” She whimpered. “I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry-”

“Don’t be.” Adrian said emphatically. “There’s nothing for you to be sorry for.”

“But… I- I was rude and-”

“You were hurting.” Nova whispered. “You are never going to be in trouble for hurting.”

“I just got scared over something stupid.” Estrella sniffed.

“Nothing about this is stupid.” Adrian told her. “Do you think we’ve never been startled? Or afraid?”

“Yeah, you two are Gatlon’s heros. You’re not afraid of anything.”

“You know…” Nova whispered. “One time Adrian snuck up on me to give me a kiss and I put him to sleep for three hours.”

Estrella couldn’t help but giggle at that.

“You know Danna sometimes turns into butterflies when she’s startled. And Simon turns invisible.” Adrian added.

“Being scared isn’t stupid.” He continued. “We’ve all been scared.”

“One cannot be brave who has no fear.” Nova murmured, a small smile on her lips.

Estrella squeezed her into a tighter hug. “Then I should be the bravest of them all.”

“You already are, my dear.” Adrian said softly. “You are the bravest of them all.”


End file.
